Leap of Faith part 1
by The Layman
Summary: While out to dinner with her new family, Max II runs into a friend from school that she has been trying avoid. What will happen...?


Dear journal,  
Ronnie suggested I start a journal because he thought I might feel better telling it things I might not feel comfortable sharing with anyone else right now. So here I am, sittling on my bed, scrawling down my thoughts about what has happened to me sinse I decided to "chart my own course through life", as it were.

For starters, I'm living with a nice old man named Ronnie Frizzelli, a retired surgeon. He lives in an appartment in New York City with his daughter Marie. Marie is NYPD, a cop in layman's terms, and is the one who introduced me to Ronnie in the first place. (For details how, read "What happened next (for Max II)".)

I've been living with Ronnie and Marie for about three and a half weeks now. About two weeks ago I started attending High school (at Ronnie's insistance) and I seem to be blending in rather well. I don't really have many friends there, on acount of me being a "recombitant lifeform".

That's right, I'm part bird.

Two percent of my genetic make-up is avian DNA, so I have one or two of the same abilities as brids do. I also have thirteen foot wings, (which is actually pretty cool if you thing about it).

But enough about me.

On my first day of school, I met this girl, Kadie, on the bus. She seemed all right, so I let her walk with me when we got off the bus. I didn't see her again until after school got out. As we said good by, she invited me to some event at her church called "youth group". I didn't know what that was exactally, but sinse I'm not a religious person, I didn't take her up on her offer. She said, (in a nutshell), that I had some time to think about it, and she got on the bus home.

That was all a week ago.

I haven't really thought that day much, but I've had this stange feeling for a couple of days now. I can't put my finger on it, but I can't help feeling that something is going to happen any minute now. Not something bad, more like something that would have some kind of impact on your life or something like that.

I don't know exactly what I mean by that, but it's the only way I can discribe it. Anyway, Ronnie said he was taking me somewhere to eat today, so I'd better stop writing for now. Until next time,  
Max II.

"Max, come on down here, I've got some thing to tell you!" Ronnie called from outside their appartment in his thick, Italian accent.

"Be right there," I called back, leaning out the window. I would have just jumped out right there and floated to the ground on my wings, but I also didn't want people to start asking question that would inevitably bring Erasers down on my neck, so I headed toward the stairs and slid down the banister. (Ain't I got style?)

When I made it outside I saw Ronnie and Marie standing next to her car. Not her patrol cruiser, her normal, ordinary, dark green '03 Honda Civic. She was wearing normal street clothes and carrying a knapsack on her left shouder. Ronnie was standing next to her, leaning non-chalantly against the car.

"What's going on?"

"Nothing's going on," Ronnie said, "We're going out to dinner."

"Dinner?" I asked scrutinizingly.

"Yeah, dinner," Marie said, "It's a meal people eat, usually around five in the evening. I'm surpised you never heard of it." Did I mention Marie has interesting sense of humor. It seems to consist of satirically reminding me of everyday things and occurances.

"I know what dinner is," I said stoically. "Why are going somewhere else to eat instead of eating at home?" In case you didn't pick up on the whole "not comfortable being around people other than Ronnie and Marie" vibe, I don't really like being around people that aren't Ronnie and Marie.

"Because we wanted to do something special for you," Marie said.

"Actually, Marie and I always go out to dinner at least once a month anyways," Ronnie confessed, "But this time we thought it would be a good idea to bring you with us. I mean, how many places have you actually gone, (except for school), sinse you started living with us?" He had a point.

I clearly wasn't going to win the argument so I just said "Fine" and hopped in the back of the car.

--------

The resturant we went to was a newly opened pizzaria about ten minutes from our house. It was painted in the colors of the Italian flag, and looked like it was made entirely out of bricks and mortar. It also looked small.

"Are you sure this is the right place?" I asked nervously, looking around for someplace, anyplace bigger than this one.

"Yes," Ronnie said, chuckling at the way my head darted from side to side like a bird, "this is the right place. A good friend of mine owns it, so there's nothing to about, kiddo."

"Let's go inside already," Marie whined, a mischievious twinkle glitering in her eyes, "I think I'll faint from hunger if we wait any longer." Ronnie smiled and opened the door.

As soon as he did the rapturous aroma of heaven (For surely this is what heaven smells like, right?) washed over me and I felt as if I were walking on coulds. I picked up all the little things; the spice of the tomato sauce, the sharpness of the mottzarella. In fact, I could even taste the pepperoni searing it's way down my throat. I probably would've fainted from shear delight if Marie hadn't snaped me out of my euphoria.

"Come on, Drooly," she chided as she took my arm, "let's go inside before someone had to scrape you of the sidewalk."

Inside, it felt like we had stepped into a completely different world. The entire place was decorated like a traditional Italian countryside. There were green hills rolling across the walls, with white clouds floating above them in a clear blue sky. The hills and clouds were slightly offset from the walls, giving them a three-dimentional look. Scattered around the walls were pictures of different places in Italy; Venice, Rome, as well as some famous landmark from those cities.

A waitress greeted us with a pasted on smile and lead us to some seats under a picture of the Little Canal. She handed us some menus and said she'd be right back to take our orders. I barely noticed this happening, mind you, I was still enraptured under the spell of the aroma hanging throughout the building.

I was snapped out of my trance by the sound of glasses being set on the table.

"Are you ready to order?" the waitress asked, taking out her pad and pen.

"Yes we are," Marie said, speaking up before either me or Ronnie could. "We'll have large pizza, with everything on it."

"Marie," Ronnie said, glaring at her suspiciously.

"Have you seen how this girl can eat?" she whispered to him. "Besides, anything we don't eat we can always take home with us." She gave him a puppydog stare that would melt glaciers.

"All right," he said, his expression softening, though not much. "One large pizza with everything on it," he told the waitress, handing back the menus, "and a side salad, with the house dressing." She jotted the extra item down on her pad and went to give the order to the kitchen.

A few minutes later a group of people came in and sat down at one of the large tables in the middle of the room. They were mostly teenagers, but there was one adult (maybe in his late twenties) with them.

I was about to give them no mind when I recongnized one of the girls at the table, she was the only one there with long red hair.

"Kadie," I breathed, surprised to see her at the exact same place I was that night.

_Author's note; This is my first two part story that I've written so far. I hope you [the reader] are not to angry by the cliffhanger I've left you at. I promise I will get the next part up as soon as I can. By the way, after this two-parter is completed I will try to implement any suggestions and/or critiques in the one after these. Please review. I'll try to get the next chapter up as soon as I'm finished with the top secret project I'm working on now. Thanks._


End file.
